


Losses

by TaraTyler



Category: Supercat - Fandom, Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, Feels for all, i like feels, so many feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-26
Updated: 2016-04-26
Packaged: 2018-06-04 13:53:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,763
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6660856
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TaraTyler/pseuds/TaraTyler
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is only because Man of Steel pissed me off for forgetting about our girl</p>
            </blockquote>





	Losses

Kara took pride in her work, all of it. She took pride as an assistant to Cat Grant, who ruled the world from her glass office like a queen. Kara took pride in her work as an artist (though her paintings were always very personal), and she took a lot of pride in saving people; being the superhero her cousin always had been. At first Kara had thought that it was some sick rumor. Kryptonians were bulletproof...fireproof...just about everything proof, almost completely indestructible. There was no way that Kal-El had been beaten, his only living blood family would have felt it, right?

Then, Cat Grant had called Kara into her office and offered her a few days off if she wanted them that Monday at work. She seemed horrified when Kara looked at her with confusion in glistening blue eyes.

“Did no one call you> Your cousin, Clark Kent, is dead. I am so sorry, sweetie. You should not have had to hear that from me.” Cat stood up quickly when she saw Kara blanch and stumble.

“We… we were the last…” she stutters.

“You mean that he was...him?” Cat asks, glancing to layouts for a tribute edition of The Tribune on her desk. Kara had just brought them to her, the crest of the House of El staring boldly up at her.

“It was my job to protect him and I wasn’t there. I should’ve been there.” Kara isn’t crying. She’s trembling hard, though, her fists clenched at her sides, knuckles white and shoulders tense.

“I can’t believe that no one told you.” Cat’s heart breaks for Kara, and for the world in general. “I can have someone to take you home if you like, or to whatever country town he’ll be buried in.”

“Buried? I can’t… I’m not going to get to give him a proper funeral… his rites.” Kara’s voice cracks. “Just… can I have a moment?”

Cat watches as Kara leaves her office and heads up on the elevator. She understood completely. Her girl needed to grieve and to think. Kara had always done that best in the air. The sky was where she had always belonged.

It wasn’t long before Cat could see her, hanging dejectedly in the sky. Winn came into her office to look too. Cat knew that the boy loved her, it was written all over his face every day.

“There has to be only so much that she can come back from.” he says. “The only question at this point, is where is going to draw the line?”

Cat sighs heavily. She had been thinking much the same thing. What ended up drawing her attention was the scream. It was impossible to miss and Cat had to believe that it could be heard in Metropolis. It was all kinds of rage, pain, and anguish all wrapped up into one.

Kara held it for as long as her lungs would allow, a considerably larger period of time than any human could hope for. Then, her voice echoed out over National City, strong but understandably hoarse.

“You have been the sun of our lives  
Our prayers will be the sun that lights  
Your way on your journey home. We will  
Remember you in every dawn and await   
the night we join you in the sky.”

Cat felt a chill go down her spine as Kara visibly took shuddering breaths, despite being miles up in the atmosphere.

“I am the last Kryptonian. I am the last of a great House and I claim patronage of this people. Those who man them harm will face me first. I will defend them until my last breath and all who come against me had best tremble in fear.” she reaches for the sun as though to grab it in her hand. James Olsen then approved beside of cat on the balcony with his camera.

His own eyes were pink and swollen. Every now and then he would still sniffle Cat had forgotten that he too had been friends with both Clark Kent and Superman. The tall man stood straight despite his grief and the shutter snapped closed. Even in her own despair, Kara was beautifully distraught.

“Someone get me Lois Lane on the phone immediately. James, go get Lucy Lane, I need a word.” Cat pulled out her own phone and tapped out a text to Alex Danvers. The reply was almost immediate.

AD: On my way to you, keep eyes on her.  
CG: Every eye is on her.

“You bellowed, Ms.Grant?” Lucy asks as people scurried around trying to figure out how to get in touch with the Major’s sister.

“What have you been doing that you missed this?” Cat points of the window to a superhero in the depths of her grief.

“Oh, God, Kara.” Lucy covers her mouth with one hand.

“She had to hear it from me. The last of her line. Had no idea that the only blood family she had left was dead until I told her that Clark Kent had died. I didn’t know his secret identity, but Kara here, had never given up hope. She doesn’t do that. I shouldn’t have had to do that. You and your hag of a sister… you knew. That was cruel, even for you.” Cat growls. “She didn’t get to have a funeral. Her people have their own traditions and beliefs and rites. You Lanes… you discarded those without a thought, you didn’t spare her a thought in your selfish mourning.”

“Three weeks. Astra had a three week mourning period.” Alex says as she enters the room looking abnormally disheveled in her D.E.O. uniform, presumably from her rush to the CatCo building.

“What do you mean?” Cat asks, worried.

“Kara spent three weeks, her vacation, a while back in sweats on her couch mourning her aunt...whom I killed. I’d bet my badges that she is planning on spending these next three weeks in that exact spot in the sky.”

“God…” Lucy swears, her gaze pained..

“Those words that she said… they signal the beginning of that time period.” Alex explains. “Those are a Kryptonians last rites before they are sent to the stars.. Kara has already had to give them to an entire planet.” 

“And no one thought to tell her about Clark?” Lucy asks.

“We had no way of finding out. Kara and Clark have no legal connection on Earth. Only Clark, Lois, James, and Winn knew outside of the D.E.O. And the two of you, of course.” Alex says.”When I get my hands on your sister.” she warns Lucy.

“I don’t blame you… but remember that she just lost the love of her life, and she just found out that he was going to propose.” Lucy says warily.

“Well, that means that Kara won’t let me beat the crap out of her.” Alex sighs. “She’ll automatically consider the bitch family. The whole Lane family with belong to her, in fact.”

“Just like that?” Lucy asks as Cat glides around the office, not missing a word, but still getting everything done that needed done. “Will she be okay up there like that?”

“That’s how they do it on Krypton. Kara has basically entered into a fugue state. It happens when she loses someone that she loves. Sort of a conditioned response after those years in the capsule, only much much shorter. It gives her time to grieve. We just have to miss her while we wait.” Alex’s voice is sad and Cat has to wonder how many times the older Danvers sister has seen Kara like this. She had just lost so much.

“Does she know what’s happening around her?” Cat asks, looking up from a tablet that someone was showing her.

“Yes, but she is unresponsive to any and all stimuli. Usually she lets it happen at home, I don’t know why she’s bringing this out into the public. It leaves her vulnerable.” Alex plops down into the public. It leaves her vulnerable.” Alex plops down into Cat’s couch. Cat glares but says nothing.

“Her pain is public, Ms.Danvers. People are making a grand circus out of Superman’s death, not realizing that the Earth hasn’t just lost a hero. Supergirl lost her only remaining blood relative, Lois lost her fiance, Kara is not making a spectacle of herself She’s proving her point. We lost the man, not a suit.” Cat finally vocalizes what she has been feeling and thing. A lot of her talks with Kara had been about the difference between the woman herself and what the world perceived the suit to mean. She had identity issues, definitely.

“Do you mind if I stay to keep an eye on her?” Alex says, eyes concerned.

“Not at all. In fact I could use your assistance in writing up an explanation for what Kara is doing. People are probably frightened and weirded out. I don’t want the masses to fear for their hero.” Cat says, all business as she shows what she has so far to the D.E.O. agent. They’ve delved into their work, all five together, when an angry redhead busts into the room.

“You don’t get to just order me to your office like a delinquent teenager, Kitty.” Lois Lane growls.

“I am very sorry for you loss, Lois.” Cat says, noting immediately the diamond ring on Lois’ left hand.

“I appreciate it, Clark was a good man and would have made an amazing husband.” Lois nods, noticing the other people in the room. “Lucy.” 

“Lois.”

“I only met him once, but Kal was unlike anything I’ve ever seen before.” Alex says, coming to Lois from around Cat’s desk. “Alex Danvers, DEO.”

“There is only one person on Earth that is in as much pain as you are, Ms.Lane, or as much pain as Martha Kent, even.” Cat says, her movements lithe and almost lethal. “Someone who didn’t just lose Clark, or Superman. Someone who lost Kal-El.”

“Do you recognize the name Danvers?” Alex asks, leading Lois gently to the balcony. Lois just nods, not understanding. “My father, Jeremiah Danvers, was the scientist that helped Clark to understand his powers My little sister Kara, is his cousin.”

Alex points to the blonde woman in the sky, now curled in on herself, hugging her knees to her chest.

“Kara Zor-El.” Lois says to herself.

“The last Kryptonian. She found out today that she’s the only one of her kind left. That she’s alone in this world. She saw Krypton die, Lois. She has lost everything, but you should know that she will be glad to meet you in three weeks when she comes down from that spot above National City. She will consider you her last family member. Her last gift from Kal-El. Kara will fight for you, protect you, defend you to her last breath in just the same way that she will this entire planet and if you were to die before her… she will say those words for you and hang in the sky for your three weeks just like this. You are her family now, whether you like it or not and she should have heard of his death from you, Lois Lane. Kara should have been at his funeral and given his last rites over his grave.”

Alex’s voice is calm and serious, only the barest hint of venom in her words.

“Do you think that she will be able to forgive me?” Lois asks, guilt weighing on her like a ton of bricks.

“I wouldn’t doubt that she already has.” Alex chuckles. “She’s good that way… the rest of us, however, are a totally different story.”

“Clark was too. He looked at me and I felt like the center of the universe. Is Kara that way?” Lois asks, sitting on Cat’s couch.

“She makes this entire city feel that way, Lo.” Lucy says, sinking down beside of her sister.

“What was it that Kara said for him?” Lois asks. Alex repeats the words reverently, unsure if it was even okay for her to say.

“Rao’s will be done.” Everyone else agrees.

Cat leans against Alex, almost as comfortable with the brunette Danvers as with the blonde one.

“What was growing up with a young Kryptonian like?” Lois asks.

“I wasn’t the most receptive sibling and mostly I avoided the kid at all costs. She was weird, man. We didn’t click for a long time. Kara had these nightmares every night, and would always end up in bed with me. She was completely fascinated by birds.”

“They didn’t have those on Krypton.” Cat adds.

“Right.” Alex agrees. “We had to explain the most basic concepts to her, like modesty of all things. She couldn’t do sports because she was so strong and so fast. But good heavens could she sing. She’s too humble to ever admit it, but she could be famous or something. Just… amazing, she was in our high-school chorus thing. They won all kinds of competitions and things.” Alex smiles. “She paints, too. Really well. Was Clark, into art?”

“He liked sculptures and photography. Other than that he was totally clueless and his singing was horrendous. He took me to the theater a few times and it was actually really nice.”

“How did I not know that about her?” Cat asks, an almost smile on her lips

“Have you ever heard her talk about any of her time at high school at all, guys?” Alex asks the group snort.

“Nothing beyond ‘it sucked’.” Winn replies.

“Because it really and truly did for her. She took her only solace in music, because it was something that she totally and completely understood. It almost like an entire language that only she spoke.” Alex says possessively. “All of the guys were terrified of her after she came after a boy that got a little too handsy with me at prom. Kara broke two of his fingers. The girls were all threatened by her because she was already this terrifying level of beautiful. Unlike our Kara now, she wasn’t confident and outgoing and bubbly and happy-go-lucky. She was very passive and let the world happen to her instead of her to it. None of that changed until college. We both grew into ourselves then.”

Every single person in the room is hanging off of Alex’s words. They were amazed by the things that they didn’t know about their Supergirl. She was just Kara to them and they had never actually considered a Kara on Earth before she had met them. Kara was all blonde hair and smiles and a red cape. Now they could see a little girl hiding behind lead lined glasses and textbooks, terrified of a new planet.

“How did your relationship end up changing? The two of you are so close now that I can’t imagine you ever being anything else.” Lucy asks, despising how useless she feels to help her friend. Lucy Lane was built to fix things and to solve problems. The fact that someone she cared about was in pain and there was nothing that she could do to help was driving her crazy.

“Kara discovered flying. She wasn’t allowed to use her powers outside of the lab but was too scared to try on her own, so she came to me. Once she got it figured out, she took me out with her. It’s the best feeling in the world; isn’t it Lois?” Alex asks the only other woman on Earth who knows what she’s talking about

“It’s absolutely amazing.” Lois murmurs, remembering flying with Clark and realizing that it would never happen again. She was grateful when Lucy pulled her in closer.

“I remember the first time that Kara saved someone on Earth. I don’t think that I had ever been more angry with her in my life.” Alex smiles sadly at the ceiling, and the rest of ‘Team Super’ looked on encouragingly. “It was her first day of Earth school. We had just barely gotten through the day without anything blowing up, or Kara having a breakdown, or speaking any other languages. Then, some guy that I had been crushing on at the time invited us to the beach and of course Kara came along, because where I went, Kara had to go too. She was like an incredibly clingy Golden Retriever puppy that I just couldn’t shake. She didn’t have her glasses, yet so she heard and saw everything, every mean word that was said about her. She was so awkward standing there in the sand, staring up at the gulls… and people were talking. Kara of course, didn’t recognize that what she was doing was out of the ordinary. I stomped over and told her to cut it out and she says. “But Alllllex, we didn’t haaaaaave birds on my planet.”

Alex drags out the vowels of her name for emphasis on exactly how whiny Kara sounded. Everyone laughs.

“I told her to just act normal. Honestly, I was kind of worried about her, but I had never wanted a sister, and at that time, having her follow me everywhere felt like the end of the world. Then, she’s gone, just like that.” Alex snaps her fingers. “I ran after her, but by the time I caught up she had already pulled a woman and baby from a burning car. This twelve year old girl had ripped the door off.”

Alex shakes her head with a half grin. “That’s when Dad made her those glasses. Cases of them, and for Clark too. Without them, I bet that Kara would never have been able to stop herself. She would run herself ragged, saving people until she fell over dead.”

“Clark would have, too.” Lois smiles sadly, looking up at Kara.

“You’re her hero, you know that right, Alex?” Winn asks and all of Kara’s friends nod in agreement.

“She would die for you ten times over.” James adds.

“There’s not much at all that she wouldn’t do for you.” Cat agrees. “I knew that before I met you. I knew that before I knew who she really was. She would have rambled about her awesome big sister constantly if I had let her. Kara would never have brought me another coffee.”

“Supergirl was your assistant?” Lois Lane scoffed. “And you had no idea?”

Cat glares at her hard enough to truly chill her blood in her veins.

“So much for an investigative journalist.” Lois teases and Alex remembers that her sister had said something about a rivalry between the two.

“I had an idea, and chose not to acknowledge it so I wouldn’t have to fire her.” Cat says, looking down her nose at Lois Lane. “having a superhero for an assistant and a girlfriend is incredibly helpful, especially when you have as many enemies as I do.”

“We should compare heroic rescues at some point.” Lois grins for real this time.

“I doubt that I’ve fallen quite as many times as you have.” Cat snorts.

“Does it count when she threw you from you own balcony and caught you before you hit the ground.” Winn teases.

“The red Kryptonite?” Lois asks.

“Big time. I have to say that before she got so mean, she got sexy. That confidence boost was hot.” Cat says with a loud exhale.

“You have no idea.” Winn and James agree at the same exact time.

All of the heads in the room snap to look at the guilty boys.

“We...um, we agreed never to speak of it.” Winn stutters looking to James who nods emphatically.

“We promise not to tell Kira that you told us.” Cat dismisses their protests.

“We went dancing.” James says. “The three of us.”

“You know how she kind of… revamped her wardrobe?” Winn asks.

“Said that she didn’t need me to dress her anymore.” Alex grumbles.

“There was this dress…” James says with an almost whisper at the glare from Lucy.

Winn whistles as he draws what is apparently an outline of the hero’s body with his hands. He yelps when Alex and Cat both growl at him.

“Is anyone in this room not in love with her?” Lois asks in confusion.

“I’m her sister!” Alex protests loudly and vehemently.

“Adopted, foster, of another species, kind of sister?” Lois points out.

“We. Are. Sisters.” Alex articulates carefully.

“I’m not in love her!” Lucy raises her hand.

“Give it a week, baby sister.” Lois says with a pat on the knee.

“Tell me more of this dancing.” Cat insists, refusing to lose focus.

“She was still crushing on James at the time and kind of… attempted to seduce him?” Winn offers.

“Bro!” James yells.

“No!” Alex gasps with a delighted grin.

“And you did not lay a hand on her, did you?” Cat prompts with a deadly look in her eyes.

“Of course not! Her on the other hand… I was mostly terrified.” James swears up and down.

“We all were.” Winn adds.

“I mean she proceeded to throw you off of your building.” Alex says, still smiling.

“Cut that out, Scully. I remember. I was there.” Cat shudders.

“She still feels like crap over that.” Lucy says.

“Those things that she said to you, Alex. I can’t imagine…”

“She cut me to bits.” Alex says with a heavy smile. “But she also wasn’t totally wrong.”

“She was very much right about the cardigans.” Cat says with a shrug. “I hate those things.”

Everyone rolls their eyes as a group.

“You would miss them if they were gone.” Alex insists.

“Really wouldn’t” Everyone argues.

“The girl makes sweatpants sexy, but those things have got to go.” Cat protests.

“Even if I’m terrified of them. I have nightmares about them.” Lucy whispers and Lois giggles.

“I haven’t laughed like this since Clark… Kal… Superman passed. Thank you. I mean, I know that I was brought here to be yelled at, but it’s been therapeutic really. Clark may be gone, but Kara is still here and if she needs me, I’m going to be here for her.” Lois stands and goes to the balcony, the others all following suit.

“Oh, my stars.” Alex breathes out as they all gasped. The little group had been talking for so long that they hadn’t noticed the sun go down… or the entire city come out into the streets for a vigil by candle-light.

“It’s beautiful.” Lois says.

“I guess that they saw our article.” Cat decides.

“They all must have.”


End file.
